Smart Speaker in a Card

Voice interaction has arrived! According to Voicebot, the preeminent data source for the emerging voice segment, there will be 21.4 million smart speakers such as Amazon Alexa and Google Home in the US by 2020. What is clear is that smart speakers are popular and unit sales are consistently exceeding analyst projections. Of equal importance, the devices are introducing upscale and early adopter consumers to voice interaction in the home and carrying that expectation over to a variety of use cases both in the home and in the office.

Voice Express has been at the forefront of providing speaker driven and self-playing media products in the toy, packaging, display and marketing spaces for over 20 years. For direct-mail and trade magazine publishers, Voice Express has produced printed audio and video brochures which enable brands to deliver self-playing audio and video to targeted audiences such as doctors and financial advisers. It’s only natural that we should lead the way with the first smart marketing collateral. With Voice Express Connect, our printed cards not only play media when they are opened but also “listen” for spoken prompts and play media personalized to the interests and needs of the recipient. Voice Express Connect not only talks…. but listens as well.

We provided the technology behind the original AudioDetail™ and Audio Button Detail Cards for Pharma and followed the success of these with the Video Detail Card. We are providing Voice Express Connect to agencies and brands wishing to communicate directly with high value customers. In partnership with our long-term marketing partner i-Path Media, we have introduced Medlexa, The Smart Brochure™ for the pharma space.

Unlike audio and video cards of the past, the media contained on this patent pending interactive presentation brochure is not limited by a finite number of PLAY buttons or mediated by a cumbersome interface using Fast-Forward or Next to navigate. Voice Express Connect can store and play-back a limitless amount of media covering diverse subjects and addressing a multiplicity of interests. The only tool necessary to access relevant content is the user’s own voice.

The card begins playing a greeting when it is opened. It welcomes the recipient and gives some general background on the Pharma brand and the medication under discussion. All of the scripts are provided by the client and may explicitly (or implicitly) showcase the brand’s commitment to communicate and hear from valued customers. The audio may be recorded by voice talent or can use state-of-the-art synthesized speech (like Alexa). Using synthesized speech facilitates easy modification by the client of the scripts (up to the last minute before the card goes to press) and also reinforces the association of the card with popular smart speakers.

Here’s what the typical flow of the MEDlexa card might look like:

The agency or brand can use as many or as few of these categories as they wish to deliver the desired information. Here’s what an interaction sounds like:

In addition to selecting a sub-menu item, the user can say “go back” to navigate up to another subject at any time. Similarly, saying “more info” takes the user to a call to action. Depending on the parameters of the campaign, the user can be provided with a toll-free number to call or a Mail-Back or Fax-Back card. Better yet, a MEDlexa campaign can include a prompt to let the doctor know that he or she can download the Medlexa app on the iPhone or Android app store. Once downloaded the app only requires the unique ID code printed on the back of the brochure and all the doctor’s contact info will be there and the app will take the doctor directly to the information, clinical studies, sample request form or other material that the doctor previously showed an interest in.

This is what the doctor might hear when selecting “more Info”.

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Examples & Ideas

Here are a few ideas of how a Voice Express Connect Smart Speaker Card could work in a campaign targeting high-value clients:

Pharma – It almost impossible to schedule a mini-detail with a doctor. Using an i-Path Media MEDLexa Smart Brochure™ you can not only get direct access, but also show how your brand values direct communication and feedback.

Real Estate – Every deal is unique, but information like cost per sq. ft, comps, tax rates etc. are critical to every deal. A Voice Express Connect Smart Speaker Card using the same prompt flow could be used to sell any real estate deal to a high value investor.

How Voice Express Can Help

Voice Express has has been designing and producing self-playing marketing collateral for over 20 years. Now we are leading the market in using state-of-the-art smart speaker technology to insure that brands can communicate directly with high value prospects, like never before. Let us help you craft a smart speaker print campaign that is guaranteed to get a response.